Officer Donald Scarfo was supposed to have a quick work day Thursday. Instead, he pulled over a tractor-trailer leaking chemicals onto Interstate 80.

Andrew Scott

Thursday was Pocono Mountain Regional Police Officer Donald Scarfo's day off, but he had to be present as the arresting officer in a case scheduled for a preliminary hearing that morning.

Scarfo's plan for the day was simple enough: Take the defendant to the hearing and then back to Monroe County Correctional Facility, head back to police headquarters, clock out for the day and then head home to the wife and 6-year-old twins.

At 11:25 a.m., Scarfo was driving west on Interstate 80, on his way back to the police station after dropping the defendant back at the county jail in Snydersville.

“I was in the Bartonsville area when I saw a tractor-trailer several vehicles ahead of me,” said the 38-year-old former Scranton police officer who served as a U.S. Army staff sergeant in Bosnia and Iraq. “I saw what looked like some sort of fluid leaking out from beneath the bottom of the trailer doors onto the road and thought, 'That doesn't look good.'”

Scarfo passed the other vehicles in front of him until he was directly behind the tractor-trailer.

“I saw two placards on the back of the trailer, which let me know there were hazardous materials on board,” he said. “There was a white placard, which usually means something toxic or corrosive, and a red placard, which means something flammable. I thought, 'This is definitely not good.'”

As the tractor-trailer approached the Tannersville exit, Scarfo alerted emergency responders, activated his lights, signaling the driver to pull over, and followed closely behind so that no other motorists got between him and the tractor-trailer leaking the fluid.

“I don't know if the driver hit a bump or what happened, but a large amount of the leaking fluid suddenly splashed from beneath the trailer's doors onto the hood of my car,” he said. “I had my windows up and the (air conditioner) on, which I guess sucked the fumes from the liquid into the car. I wouldn't say it smelled like Windex as someone else said, but it was definitely a thick, pungent odor I can't really describe.”

Scarfo began feeling dizzy from the odor as the tractor-trailer pulled over onto the highway's shoulder, just before the Tannersville exit.

“I wanted him to pull farther off onto the exit ramp so we'd just have to close the ramp and not the whole highway, but that's where he decided to stop,” he said. “When he came to rest, I backed my car up to about 30 yards away to put some distance between me and the leaking fluid and fumes.”

Scarfo then exited his car, waved at the driver to exit the tractor cab's passenger side, stepped over the guard rail to protect himself from passing traffic and approached the cab's passenger side.

The driver exited the cab's passenger side and met Scarfo about 20 yards from the trailer's rear.

“He told me he hadn't been aware of the leak and that he had a spill kit in his cab,” Scarfo said. “He started walking back to get it, but then stopped about halfway (before reaching the trailer's rear), turned around and walked back to me. I guess the fumes must have been too strong for him, too. By that time, my own dizziness had worn off a bit since I was standing out in fresh air and away from the fumes.”

Within minutes, a state trooper arrived and the tractor-trailer driver, whose identity Scarfo didn't get, was asked to sit in the trooper's back seat.

Firefighters from Pocono and Jackson townships arrived shortly afterward, followed by Central Pocono Ambulance and then the county Office of Emergency Services and hazardous materials team.

“The ambulance personnel met me, asking me how I was feeling, if I had any allergies or medical conditions or was experiencing any shortness of breath,” Scarfo said. “They examined me and then had me wash my hands in sterile water. Then, they took me into the back of the ambulance, got my vitals and put me on oxygen, which really helped clear up any remaining dizziness.”

Scarfo was then taken to Pocono Medical Center, where his blood was drawn and tested. Given a clean bill of health, he was released several hours later, at 4 p.m., picked up by a fellow PMRP officer and taken back to the station.

“When I got home, I told my wife and she was just glad it wasn't worse,” he said. “This has never happened to me before and, hopefully, won't ever happen to me again.”

The hazmat team found the tractor-trailer had been hauling more than 40 drums containing chemicals later identified as acetone, toluene and a waste pesticide, for US Environmental in Downingtown.

US Environmental is “a leading provider of integrated industrial energy services providing turnkey client-based solutions to the energy, petroleum, natural gas, petro-chemical, power, chemical, manufacturing and engineering sectors,” according to its website.

“The company services thousands of clients including Fortune 500 companies, local, state and federal entities and privately held clients, helping them stay in compliance, safe, on schedule and on budget with a full range of services,” such as gas/oil field services, high-pressure blasting and waste disposal.

Officials from the company were not immediately available today. The state Department of Environmental Protection said today that its solid waste management team is conducting its own investigation into the incident.

Acetone is a colorless, flammable liquid used for cleaning in laboratories and as an ingredient in nail polish remover and paint thinner, according to online information about this and other chemicals.

Toluene is a clear, water-insoluble liquid used as an idustrial feedstock and solvent.

Neither the still-unidentifed tractor-trailer driver nor anyone else was taken to the hospital.The incident remains under investigation.

Scarfo is scheduled to return to work Sunday.

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